The New Host Is A Wallflower?
by MelloYelloandSheepyNear
Summary: Norio Morishita is a simple boy, with little to no self esteem. He visited the host club in host club to finally confess to his true love, but somehow wound up joining! Can the host club help him gain confidence? (OCx? TamaxKyo, many OCs but no romance other than Norio. )
1. Chapter 1

Spring was a time of love for Ouran Academy. Well, every season was a time of love for the Host Club, but spring was a time the group truly cherished. The blooming flora filled their young bodies with an invigoration only young men in their prime can feel. That was why today's theme was flowers, as suggested by Tamaki in a dramatic fit of romance. Vases of flowers were placed on shelves and tables and hung from the ceiling. The once empty music room was filled with a glorious mix of scents and lovely sights.

_"__Oh Tamaki, these flowers are beautiful!" Fawned a pretty young first year. _

_"__And yet, they pale in comparison to your beauty, my dearest." The host king cooed in her ear, catching her as she swooned. _

And so the day went on much like that. Too soon for both the girls and Tamaki however, it was nearly time to close. Almost all the guests had left, giggling in delight and relating their experiences to one another. On the far side of the room, Kyouya sat calculating the expenses of today's session, when a slight movement in the open doorway closest to him caught his eye.

Turning his glare hidden eyes back to his computer screen, he saw fit to speak up; "It seems one of our guests is feeling shy."

At the mention of a possible shrinking violet, Tamaki twirled towards the general direction Kyouya gestured to. With a smile full of charm, he pulled a rose out of nowhere and held it towards the doorway.

"Don't be shy, my dear. Why not come inside and join us?" the blond man purred, indigo eyes shining with delight as another movement could be seen.

A whimper, then a set of harsh female whispers sounded from the doorway. They slowly grew louder, catching the attention of the other hosts, prompting them all to come closer.

"Just tell him already!" One of the female voices screeched, before a figure was pushed into the room, -right into an unsuspecting Haruhi. The two bodies went down hard on top of each other with the figure's face pushed into Haruhi's chest.

The room fell deathly silent as the twins and Tamaki gaped in horror.

"O-oh! Please, I'm so sorry," The stranger exclaimed, pushing up to lie above Haruhi. "I didn't mean to!"

The stranger was a male, with tousled auburn hair and dark green eyes, which shined with confusion when they saw that the body below did not look how it'd felt.

"It's fine, I'm-" but Haruhi didn't get to finish her reassurances, as she was roughly pulled away from the boy by Tamaki, the twins each taking one of the boy's arm in a vice grip.

"How much did you see?" they hissed into his ears in unison, tone full of venom and the promise of possible death if he answered incorrectly.

"Uh, I…uh…!" the boy stuttered as the scowling twins closed in on him.

"Hey, wait, what are you doing!?" Haruhi called, yanking herself out Tamaki's grip, "I'm fine, leave him alone!"

Still scowling, the twins acquiesced, dropping the boy's arms, allowing him to scramble away. Dusting himself, he refused to meet the eyes of anyone else in the room.

Safely moving Haruhi out of the way, Tamaki loomed over the young man, eyes shining with malice. "You won't tell a soul right?"

Body tensing up tightly, the boy shook his head and hands wildly. "N-no sir, I won't tell a soul!"

"Come to think of it," Hikaru began.

"Why's a guy visiting the host club anyway?" Kaoru finished for the dominant twin.

Haruhi thought to mention that fact that guys visit all the time: Nekozawa, Kasanoda, etc… But decided against it, as she knew they probably wouldn't listen anyway.

"Well," The boy's face flushed a pretty pink. "Y-you see…" He opened his mouth to try to continue explaining himself, but the sound of a motor running interrupted him.

Haughty laughter filled the air as Renge rose from her pedestal triumphantly, chest pushed out in pride.

"You're even more blind than I thought! Can you not see this poor boy's dilemma?!"

Taking a deep breathe, Haruhi looked at Renge apprehensively, not sure if she should even ask. She allowed herself a quick apologetic glance at the boy.

The French girl sniffed and thrust her chest out even more. For more dramatic effect, she raised a finger in her hair. "The reason is…" With the aura of a seasoned detective, she pointed an accusing finger at the boy. "TRUE LOVE!"

As every eye in the room turned to look at the boy in shock, the poor boy sputtered as his face grew steadily redder with every passing second.

"Oh!" Tamaki cried, grasping the boy's hands and holding them up to his face. "Why didn't you say so? There is nothing wrong with acting on love!"

The host king let go of one of the boy's hands to hold up a rose and then wound the other arm around his waist. "Even if you're feelings for me are taboo, I understand. How you must have agonized over your feelings, working up to strength to finally-"

"Um, I'm not in love with you, Suoh-Senpai…"

The comment was a knife threw Tamaki's pride. The blond stumbled back, clutching his chest in agony before falling to the ground, twitching. Speaking up for the first time, Honey frowned, clutching Usa-chan to his chest tightly.

"But if he's not on love with Tama-chan, who is he in love with?"

The boy took a deep steadying breath. "My name is Norio Morishita, a first year. I've come to join the host club… If that's ok…"

Kyouya quickly intervened. "Impossible. You'd need a personality type, not to mention the extra costs." He typed up a few quick figures on his computer, working out the extra calculations.

"Wait a minute!" Renge screeched, jumping from the pedestal to land in front of Norio. She placed a scrutinizing eye on him, even as his face flushed more and more. "I've got it!" she proclaimed, turning back to the hosts.

"Got what?" Haruhi asked attentively, afraid of the answer she would get.

"There's no doubt about it! He's the Wallflower type!"

Tamaki perked up from his place on the floor and appeared next to Renge. Flailing his arms about, he asked, "Wallflower!? What's that supposed to mean?"

She held up a finger in reply before clearing her throat. "Now, while many girls are interested in being swept away by a prince or being loved by twins, there are many girls with motherly tendencies. These girls require a more submissive type of boy.

Boys that are quiet and withdrawn are known as Wallflowers! Wallflowers often need protection and strong but loving touch in order to feel safe, and there are tons of girls who would love to satisfy that need."

The entire club listened to with rapt attention.

"Norio-kun fits that definition to a 'T'!" She concluded, pointing another accusing finger at Norio.

"M-me? A Wallflower?" Norio raised a hand to point to himself in confusion.

"It's perfect!" Tamaki fist pumped the air, pride coming back full force. "So we'll let Norio-kun join to find his true love!"

The twins joined their boss in fist pumping as Honey cheered along. Once again, Haruhi sent an apologetic look to the young man standing dumbfounded next to her.

"There still rests the matter of his costumes." Kyouya stated, raining all over the other's parades.

"But Mommy!" wailed Tamaki, throwing his arms around his counterpart's waist. "This is a matter of love! We have to help him!"

"Actually Ootori-Senpai, I can pay." Norio interrupted the quarreling couple.

Kyouya raised an inquisitive eyebrow. He extracted Tamaki from his person, before walking to stand in front of the younger man. "Did you say your name was Morishita?"

The younger boy nodded. Kyouya stood silently for a few seconds before turning to his notepad. "We haven't prepared any costumes for Norio-kun, so we'll have to postpone our lord and ladies theme tomorrow for another day. Be here tomorrow afternoon to start your first day."

Another set of cheers erupted from the other hosts at their "Mommy's" acceptance.


	2. Chapter 2

To say the next day came quickly for Norio was an understatement. When his servants woke him up this morning, he wasn't sure if he should even get out of bed.

"Young master," his servant, Akashi asked politely, shaking him gently. "I know you are awake, young master. The eldest mistress requests for you to come downstairs." When his master did not say anything, he ran a hand through the young man's hair lovingly, feeling him tense up at the motion.

"That's fine, Akashi!" The man in the bed squeaked. "Please wait outside my door until I call for you again!"

With a frown, Akashi nodded, following his master's orders. When he heard the door close, Norio's body relaxed once more.

The thought of his older sister requesting his presence was even more nerve wracking than the thought of becoming a host today, but it was enough to give him the strength to get of bed. With a sigh, Norio sat up, his light blue sheets pooling around his hips. He swung his legs onto the side of the bed and winced at the cold hardwood floor on his bare feet.

He pushed himself up again, slumping his shoulders as he trudged over to the bathroom attached to his bedroom. The large windows on the wall nearest his bed allowed blinding sunlight to stream throughout the entire room and into the bathroom, prompting him to not bother turning on the light.

Bringing his eyes up, he winced once more at the sight of his reflection; he never was a fan of his appearance. His hair was long, hanging down in thick strands to his chin in the front and falling down the nape of his neck in the back, parted in the middle. His face was heart shaped and childish, with rosy cheeks and doll like eyelashes and full lips. He was cute, much cuter than a young man should be.

Scowling, he rubbed the side of his neck, wrenching his gaze from the mirror to start his morning routine. Once he finished, he carefully put on his school uniform, checking the mirror one more time, looking away in dissatisfaction.

Outside his bedroom door, his personal servant stood waiting. The tall man's hair was long and dark red, tied back into a low ponytail, reaching the middle of his back and he wore a dark grey butler's vest over a white dress shirt and grey pants. His dark blue eyes shined in admiration as his master came out.

"Akashi, where is my older sister?" Norio asked, nodded in greeting at the older man.

"She is in the dining room, young master. Would you like me to accompany you?"

With a slight smile, Norio refused the offer, ignoring the man's distressed frown at the refusal. Though he appreciated Akashi's enthusiasm, it was somewhat creepy how excited he was to see him, like a lost puppy. He'd come into their service only three years ago, but in those 3 years, he was almost always near Norio. He never could get used it.

Walking down the halls of his mansion, he felt the little confidence he managed to gather drain from his body with every step he took. As he arrived at the huge wooden doors, he set a trembling hand on the door knob, took a steadying breath and opened the door.

Next to the large windows lining the far walls, Kimiko Morishita sat elegant as always in her Lobelia uniform, sipping her morning cup of tea. When her brother stepped into the room, her striking caramel eyes struck a sour chord through his body as she turned her gaze towards him.

"Ah little brother, join me, wont you?"

Norio hesitated in the doorway, mind desperately reaching for a reason to not sit down. But as her gaze on him grew more intense, he felt himself being crushed beneath it. Conceding defeat, he sighed and trudged over to sit across the small table from his sister.

Her own darker auburn hair was pulled into a high ponytail, the curled tips of hair brushing against her back. Strands of it, also curled, framed her angular face, and her thin lips were pulled into a small smile.

The Morishita family was a long line of Lawyers, known for their ability to manipulate your words and turn them against you before you're even aware that you've dug your own grave. That ability could be seen easiest in the eldest daughter and heiress to the family business, Kimiko, who lived as if life was a courtroom and everyone was a suspect on the stand.

Her voice was silky and smooth, filled with honey and vinegar as she spoke, "So, dear brother, I heard from a sister of one of my classmates at Lobelia that you've joined the Ouran Host club, correct?"

Norio nodded, unwilling to speak in fear of saying something for her analyze and turn against him.

"Kyouya Ootori is a part of that club, correct?"

Another nod.

"The Ootori family has been very close to us, as you know. They are best client. Do not do anything to mess this up, are we clear?" The words were said gently, even as the fingers holding her teacup in front of her face tightened. Poker face still intact, she set the cup down and looked at her brother.

"Yes ma'am." He muttered, standing up quickly and rushing out, sending a quick "good-bye!" over his shoulder. Narrowly avoiding Akashi as he stood outside the door, he rushed out the front door and practically dove into the limo. Once inside, he clutched his chest in attempt to calm his pounding heart. If he was wise, he would follow his sister's orders.

Classes went by in a blur of sound and motion, and now he stood in front of the music room door, hand reaching for the knob slowly. Opening the door, he poked his head through the door, speaking up shyly. "Excuse me?"

"Norio-kun!" Tamaki exclaimed upon seeing him, pulling him into the room with a flourish. "I'm glad you decided to join us today!"

At the sound of Tamaki's greeting, the other hosts came to gather around. Honey ran over and tugged on Norio's sleeves, adorable smile on his face.

"Nori-chan! You'll sit with me and Takeshi, right?" The shota boy asked, tugging his kouhai over to the table where Mori sat looking at them. The sight of the older man sitting at the table made Norio feel nervous, even as Honey pushed him into a seat and plopped down next to him.

"Do you like cake, Nori-chan?"

"Uhm, Yes. I love chocolate cake…" he murmured. Honey's eyes lit up in happiness as he pushed a large piece of chocolate cake in front of Norio, who in turn mumbled a thank-you and dug in slowly.

"I'm surprised you decided to show up." Haruhi remarked amiably as she stood next to him.

"To be honest, so am I…" The two of them shared a knowing grimace before Haruhi sidestepped to avoid a tackle hug from her eccentric senpai. On other side of the room, the twins stood watching, evil grins splitting their faces. Slinking across the room, they wrapped their arms around Norio much like they do Haruhi, snickering at the squeal the action brought forth.

"Hey, Norio-kun…" Hikaru began.

"We were just thinking that since the boss isn't your one true love…" Kaoru followed after.

"Maybe it's one of us?" They finished in unison, nuzzling their cheeks against Norio's flushed ones. The boy opened and closed his mouth, flush rising to his ears and down his neck.

"Could the two of you stop harassing our newest member? The guests are arriving soon." Kyouya orders, not even looking up.

Pouting, both boys followed their senpai's orders, but not before throwing a flirty grin over their shoulders towards Norio. Still gaping at their actions, Norio sputtered uselessly as Haruhi patted him on the shoulder comfortingly.

As the other hosts got into position, Norio took a bite of cake to calm himself just as the ladies made their way into the room. Tamaki rushed over to greet them, charm just exuding from him. Norio listened and watched in rapt attention. There was something amazing about the way Tamaki carried himself. So focused was he, that he almost didn't notice when three giggling girls sat down at the table with him.

He sat stock still, unsure what to say when one of them asked, "Are you a new host?"

Gulping down the terror he felt, he thought for a few moments. _'Well, if I'm the "Wallflower Host", I might as well be good at it…"_

"You're not very talkative, are you?" One of them said coyly, leaning forward with a soft smile.

Taking a page from Tamaki's book, Norio gave a small pout, dripping with the little charm he had. "I-I'm sorry… It's just…" Looking up at them through his eyelashes, he smiled shyly. "I've never met girls as pretty as you…"

The squeal that erupted from their throats caught the attention of the other ladies, and soon, Norio was surrounded by women.

"What's your name?" Many of them squealed.

"Oh, um, it's Norio. Um…" He fidgeted in his seat, pouting at the ladies once more. "Wouldn't you rather talk to other hosts? They're much more entertaining than I could be…"

Behind the crowd of girls, the other hosts watched the fangirl storm.

"Wow, I didn't think he'd be this popular." Haruhi raised her eyebrow, watching as Tamaki made his way through the crowd to stand next Norio.

Taking Norio by the hand, he pulled him up and cradled the younger man to his chest. "Norio-kun, please don't say that about yourself! You are a valuable new member here, please remember that!"

Though surprised, Norio played along, nuzzling into Tamaki's chest, "Tamaki-senpai…Thank you…"

As the squeals grew in volume and intensity, Kyouya lifted his eyes briefly to see what had caused such a reaction. The sight of Norio in Tamaki's arms caused his fingers to stall over the keyboard for a few seconds. Though imperceptible to outsiders, his heart dropped into his stomach at the sight.

The feeling lasted only a few seconds, when he remember it was only an act. This was not the time for those types of feelings. He would not allow how he felt to interfere with his job. As he noticed Tamaki twirl his way over to him, he quickly fixed his poker face. If there was anyone he truly would not allow to see him vulnerable, it was Tamaki.


	3. Chapter 3

The next two days went by without a hitch. In order to make Norio feel more comfortable (and due to a lack of costumes), Cosplays were pushed back. The ladies certainly weren't complaining. It seemed "The Wallflower Host" was a huge hit among them, tugging heartstrings with his pouts and teary eyes. Even Tamaki seemed to come up with a new act…

The fan girls loved the idea of the kind, handsome prince comforting the withdrawn young servant boy and Tamaki was more than happy to feed their obsession. Thus, the two of them were spending most of their club hours together. On the third day, Norio's costumes were finally arranged and the first theme day was announced; Lords and Servants.

The club room floor was covered in pillows of varying colors and red curtains hung from the ceiling, obscuring the different "shows" the hosts put on.

Honey, Kyouya, Hikaru, and Tamaki were the dashing (and adorable) princes in colorful princely robes and jeweled crowns while Haruhi, Mori, Kaoru, and Norio were cast as the lowly (but every bit as handsome) servant boys in plain colored servant's vests and pants.

Hikaru and Kaoru played their parts well as the twins separated at birth, brought together by love forbidden by gender, class, and blood.

_"Dearest Kaoru, come into my arms. Let me love you as only a prince can." Hikaru purred, pulling Kaoru onto his lap as he sat on one of the plush-cushioned thrones set up all about the room. As he was hoisted into the dominant twin's lap, Kaoru buried his face into his brother's neck._

_"Hikaru, please, it's unfitting of a prince-"_

_"I don't care what's fitting of a prince. I want you," He interrupted, pulling Kaoru's face out of the crook of his neck and bringing it closer, "Right now…" In the background of the scene, the girls stood watching the 'brotherly love', tissues clutched tightly in front of them._

As the day was ending, Norio ducked under one of the many curtains that hung from ceiling and sat down on the pillow covered floor, letting out a deep sigh.

"Tamaki-senpai wearing you out?" Haruhi plopped down next to him, setting a hand on his shoulder in comfort. "I know the feeling." Norio crossed his legs and set his hands down on the floor in front of him.

"How do you deal with it, Haruhi? The two of them managed to become quite close, Haruhi becoming his mentor in handling the host club's "eccentricities". Norio was the new "Son" after all, and for some (most), that was difficult. The two of them shared a comfortable silence for a short while and the quiet was nice.

"Nori-chan!" So much for the quiet.

Honey poked his head under the curtain, big adorable grin splitting his face. "Could you get me some more cake? Usa-chan wants more tea, too!"

Sharing a nod with Haruhi, Norio stood and followed Honey back to his table. As he was transporting the cake back to him, he tripped over a nearby pillow. As he went down, he winced, expecting to feel the cold tile floor hit his face, but all he felt were strong arms holding him up.

He opened his eyes to meet Mori-senpai's as he held him close to his chest.

"Are you okay?" The older man's deep voice sent shivers down Norio's spine. When was set back onto the ground, his face was completely red.

"Y-yeah…thank you, Mori-senpai…" Norio muttered, still clutching tightly to the other man's vest. Mori's hands rested on his shoulders, holding him to his chest. Once more, their audience squealed.

"Norio-kun, are you ok?" Tamaki rushed over pulling Norio away from Mori and clutching his hands dramatically. Kyouya walked over, clipboard in hand and pointedly refused to look at the two of them, keeping his eyes on the broken tea set and spilled cake on the floor.

"That's around 400,000 added to your debt, Haruhi."

"Wait, hold on, why's it added to _my _debt!?" the brunette exclaimed as she cleaned up the mess. Pulling his hands from Tamaki, Norio bent down to help Haruhi.

"I'll pay for it, Haruhi, don't worry."

Haruhi sighed, but nodded. As they picked the broken pieces, another set of hands joined them. Startled, both of them looked over to see Mori kneeling down as well to pick up the pieces. Every time his longer fingers brushed against Norio's, more tingles spread up his spine. He could see his hands starting to shake.

The only one of them who seemed to notice his trembling was Haruhi. She was so focused on Norio's hands that she didn't notice what her own were doing and cut her finger on a shard. She pulled her finger back and hissed.

"Haruhi! What-" Norio began, but was cut off by Tamaki.

"Haruhi!" The host king dove over, taking his "daughter's" hand in his own to look at her finger. The cut, while small, was abnormally deep and blood welled up quicker than usual. The sight of the blood had Tamaki screaming and calling for a medic.

Close behind, Kyouya breathed an almost minuscule sigh of relief; It seemed if things were going back to normal. But still…

He glanced to wear Norio still kneeled on the ground, staring in confusion. He was almost starting to regret allowing the boy to join. But with his addition to the "family", their profits skyrocketed along with, as much as he hated to admit it, Tamaki's mood.

A dark part of him wanted to drag Tamaki away from the boy. Haruhi wasn't a threat; Tamaki, while dim, genuinely cared for the girl only as a "daughter". The blond had confessed his sexuality to him many years ago, after all. Kyouya honestly had not been surprised, if anything he'd been elated. Inwardly, of course.

Outwardly, he'd calmly assured his blonde friend that he didn't care either way and allowed himself to relish in the answering hug.

"Kyouya!" The sound of his prince calling his name snapped him back to the present. The blond had been waving his hand in front of his face.

"You're not paying attention, that's not like you." The concern was easily heard in his voice. Kyouya blinked and looked around Tamaki. Hikaru and Kaoru were bandaging Haruhi's entire hand while Norio attempted to explain that she might not need that much wrapping.

He allowed himself the tiniest smile. His family was so strange, but even with its new addition, it was nice. Schooling his poker face back into place, he turned to Tamaki. "I'm fine, Tamaki.

After getting changed and cleaning up the decorations, Norio stopped Haruhi as she was walking out the door. "Hey, can I ask you something?" She raised an eyebrow but nodded. He rubbed his arm shyly.

"Can I, come over? It's important."

If it was anyone else, she would have flat out refused. But he seemed, genuinely distressed.

"Alright, come over tomorrow." She wrote down her address, and looked around the room. (Making sure none of the hosts were nearby.)

The next day, a bright and sunny Saturday, Norio arrived in front of Haruhi's simple apartment. Though surprised that it was _so_ _shabby_, he wasn't going to judge. Climbing the stairs and knocking on the door gently, he shifted his little bag of sweets and snacks on his shoulder. They were using the excuse of studying, after all.

Seconds after knocking, an insanely beautiful man opened the door.

"Um, Mr…Fujioka…?"

"Oh! You must be Norio, Haruhi's in the living room."

As Norio nodded his thanks and walked past the beautiful man, a hand clutched his shoulder in a death grip and a mouth hovered dangerously close to his ear.

"Don't try anything, you hear me?" Mr. Fujioka hissed into his ear, letting go and straightening, the smile stretching across his face once more. "Haruhi, honey, I'm leaving!"

"Okay, Dad!"

As Mr. Fujioka swept out of the door gracefully, Norio followed the sound of his friend's voice into the room he assumed was the living room. It was a small room, with a table in the middle where Haruhi sat, books laid out on the table.

"Hey," she greeted him as he sat down across from her, laying the bag of snacks on the table in between. It was a little uncomfortable to sit so scrunched up, but today was a very important day.

"So," Haruhi started, opening a can of cola and staring at her friend pointedly. "What did you want to talk about?"

He opened a candy bar and nibbled at it daintily, looking down at the table pointedly. "So, well, you know that I joined the host club, to find my love, right?"

Haruhi giggled a little, "So Tamaki- senpai was right? That's a new one."

They shared a quick laugh before Norio got serious once more

"I already knew who my true love was. I've known it this whole time."

Haruhi leaned forward a little more. "Is she a regular at the club?''

"No. and it's not a she…" the young man replied, trailing off uncertainly. Not taken aback in the least, Haruhi nodded for him to go on. Norio bit off a chunk of his chocolate bar in anxiousness, swallowed and took a deep breath.

"It's Mori-senpai."


	4. Chapter 4

As Norio sat trembling after his confession, Haruhi calmly set down her cola. When Norio looked up, puzzled at her silence, she gave him a dazzling smile. With a gentle tone of voice, she spoke;

"It's ok. Love is love, no matter what the gender is. If you're sure of your feelings, I don't care who you're in love with."

For a few seconds, Norio could see why the other hosts cared so much for Haruhi, why she was such a popular host. Tears dribbling down his face, he scooted over and plopped his head onto her shoulder. The brunette calmly patted his head, inwardly mourning her ruined shirt.

After a few more emotion filled moments, the two got to planning. In the notebooks they brought out for "studying", they began writing down all the possible ways for Norio to win Mori-senpai's heart.

"Well," Haruhi began, tapping her chin. "You probably won't get anywhere unless you win Honey-senpai over." Norio nodded, but wasn't very worried.

"He'll understand, right?" The thought of asking for his smaller senpai's blessing had not occurred to him, but now it seemed almost mandatory.

The brunnette's mind flashed to all the times she's witnessed Honey's acts of selfishness. Everytime she thought she was sure of her senpai's personality, he always threw her a curveball.

"I'm pretty sure that he won't mind, but it's best to ask..." She gave a final nod and took a sure sip of her cola. Norio allowed himself a small smile; he knew going to Haruhi was a good decision.

The next morning was spent like any for Norio; dodging his sister and Akashi and diving into the limo like his life depending on it. But today, he had a something little bit extra in his bag: a medium sized light blue bunny plush. He was pretty sure Honey enjoyed his company, but a little insurance wasn't unwise, was it?

As he came up to the door of his first hour, two whispering figures were crouched in front of the door. Two (unfortunately) familiar figures. With an exasperated roll of his eyes he spoke up, "Akira, Hisoka-chan, what are you two doing?"

At the sound of their names, the young boy and girl sprang up. Akira was a slender boy of average height, with black hair combed wildly into a faux hawk stylized like his favorite video game character, with tanned skin and and bright hazel eyes, while Hisoka was a heavy set girl with full strawberry blonde pigtails and long bangs that hung on either side of her circular face and pale skin with the slightest smattering of freckles across her nose and hazy brown eyes.

"Waitin' for you, man!" Akira launched himself forward into a hug. "Hisa-chii and I heard you joined the host club~!" Suspicious at his long time friends' actions, he raised an eyebrow. "Aaaannnd?"

As if Norio was stupid for simply inquiring, Akira scoffed. "That's great exposure for the Otaku club! You gotta get us inside!" The Otaku Club was the most obscure and ridiculed club in school, probably because the only two members were these two crazies.

Akira's father, Ichirou Honda was composer for a long franchise of Kaiju horror movies, and he was the all time authority for anything related to that genre. Otaku from around the school flocked to him for inside knowledge. Hisoka's aunt, Manami Morioka was the founder and lead publisher of Lavender Shoppe, a publishing firm for shoujo manga. Therefore, she got a look at all the new chapters of all the newest shoujo manga. The Morishita family had represented both of them many times and so, all of them were relatively close friends.

Up until recently, Hisoka had

been a hikikomori, but Akira managed to break into her shell and get her to come outside. Although she still barely spoke, she was much more open with her feelings now. It's only recently she'd enrolled in Ouran Academy.

His friends always had some kind of ulterior motive to their schemes, not all of them completely safe or 'legal', so you could understand his hesitance. Somehow, someway, he always managed to get sucked into them, so he didn't even bother to say no. Thanks to some string pulling, they had all their classes together, so poor Norio had to deal with two excited nerds bouncing behind him all day.

As classes ended and clubs started, the starry-eyed Otaku walked behind their friend happily, walking through the door with him. Once again, the hosts gathered around the door.

"Norio-kun always has the best entrances." The twins grinned, already having caught Haruhi and were currently nuzzling their cheeks against her struggling form. Stepping forward with sparkling eyes, Hisoka snapped a picture of the spectacle with her cell phone before retreating back behind Norio. Akira, however, was horrified.

"Oh no, they're all hot! We'll never recruit new members at this rate!" With enough dramatic flair to make Tamaki proud, he threw himself to the ground, clutching his chest. "Our club is doomed..."

It took a while (what with peeling Akira off the ground, convincing Kyoya to allow them to stay, and tearing Hisoka's cellphone away from her death grip per Kyoya's refusal to allow non-profit photoshoots.), but everything was calmed down. Today was a break from the customers, which meant it was perfect for Norio to execute his plan.

Having fallen into a routine, Norio sat with Honey and Mori, calmly nibbling at his cake while listening to Akira's fevered ranting about how a club alliance was necessary in order to increase both club's morale (Which was very moving to Tamaki, not so much Kyoya.) 'Now's as good a time as any.' he thought, reaching into his bookbag.

"Ah, Honey-senpai," he began, getting his smaller senpai's attention.

The shota swallowed and smiled. "Yeah, Nori-chan?"

He pulled the plushie out of his bag and held it out towards Honey. "I want you to have this. A gift."

His brown eyes sparkled with happiness as he took the plush and held it close to him. "So cute! Where'd you get him? Does he have a name?"

Smiling at the reaction his gift got him, Norio nodded. "His name is Usagito. He was mine a long time ago. I thought I'd give him a good home." Honey held Usagito close before picking up Usa-chan and holding him as well. With amusement in his eyes, Norio watched his senpai introduce the two rabbit plushes to each other.

Before he could open his mouth to ask Honey if they could talk alone, Honey spoke, "Takeshi, could you get me some more tea?" The large student nodded stoically and got up to fulfill his cousin's request. When he was out of earshot, Honey set both of the stuffed animals down on the table.

"Go ahead." Taken aback at the unusually serious tone, Norio could only respond with, "Huh?"

"Takeshi's always doing things to make me happy. He never does anything selfish. I think he deserves to be happy." He smiled wisely, for once looking like his age. Then, he patted Norio's knee discreetly as Mori came back with tea in hand.

With his flushed face buried in his cake, Norio mumbled a quiet expression of gratitude. The air was cleared of all tension, and soon everything was back to normal once more.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello everyone, it's Sheepy Near! I just wanna thank you all for sticking around this far! I love the 4 of you who've reviewed so far, and I'd love to get a little more feedback! I know I haven't showcased any of Norio's good qualities in any of these chapters, but I do assure you, he has some! Touching back on the review thing, I'm setting a challenge! If I get just 2 more reviews, I'll begin on the chapter after this one! Until then, have fun Flower-Buds!**

With Honey's approval came the ephemeral scents of summer, of clinquant water, of cut grass, of sempiternal forests. The wind carried with it the scent of Norio's love. Every breeze that swept across his face left a light flush in its place.

As there were now no more hinderances, "meetings" were commonplace at Haruhi's, usually every weekend, except when Tamaki and the twins began getting too antsy at not seeing Haruhi. The three were kept unaware of their plots, as the simplest slip up could cause heartbreak for poor Norio. (it was assumed Kyoya already knew; Mommy always knew.)

Ronka, as a good parent should be, grew very suspicious of these frequent visits as well, especially when Akira and Hisoka joined in. He very nearly pulled the plug on the whole operation, demanding to be clued in. Once told, he readily allowed the use of his living room and his kitchen.

"With Bunny-senpai's approval, the plan to secure Mori-senpai's heart is a go!" Akira exclaimed at the newest meeting at Haruhi's house. The brunnette was still unsure how the tanned boy and freckled girl managed to locate her home, bursting in and refusing to leave until they were allowed on the meetings. She let it be, however, when Norio promised to keep them on a short leash. Before anyone could speak again, Ronka twirled into the room.

"Haruhi! You have another visitor."

The four pairs of eyes turned to the doorway as Honey stepped in, box of sweets in hand and alone. Of course, no one expected the older boy to rat out their "schemes", but the sight the taller man not being right behind him was a little jarring. But, whether oblivious to or ignoring the eyes on him, he sat down next to Haruhi with his usual cute grin.

"Hi guys! What do we have so far?" In his little arms were Usa-Chan, and Usagito. The little blond set the sweets on the table and looked around the room with eyes full of childish curiosity. Without hesitation, Akira grabbed a cake and munched on it noisily before speaking again.

"Anyway, with Bunny-senpai-"

"You mean, Honey-senpai?" Haruhi interrupted him with a raised eyebrow. Akira looked at Hisoka, and both of them gestured to the rabbits in Honey's hand as if to prove their point. Rolling her eyes, Haruhi sighed; now she had two more psychos in her life.

"Anyway, with Bunny-senpai's approval, the plan to secure Mori-senpai's heart is a go!" He reiterated for the last time, more full of annoyance than enthusiasm.

Hisoka raised her hand, and gave her best friend a pointed look. Flustered, Akira replied as if she spoke; "I know we don't have a plan! We're working on it, aren't we!?"

The senior hosts looked to Norio for an explanation, but he shook his head.

"Why not go up and just ask him?" The ever sensible Haruhi asked, but as usual, her plan was ignored.

"Pfft, have you seen Norio? He'd never get up the balls you'd need to ask anyone out, let alone anyone as hot and cool as Mori-senpai."

As much as it made him angry, Akira's observation was true; Norio did not have the emotion strength to ask anyone out, especially not the God that was Morinozuka Takeshi. The realization hit him hard in that moment.

What was he compared to Mori?

Just a scrawny pale mess of a boy, too cute to be taken seriously, too nervous to work it to his advantage like Honey, and too damn cowardly to confess to the man he loved.

As he continued his mental beatdown on his pride, a hand laid itself on his thigh. Hisoka's hazy eyes met his, and her usually blank face had the smallest of smiles.

It was as if he could see into her mind through her gaze, could hear her pointing out the things that made him great; he just needed to break out of his shell and as his eyes swept across the room, at his friends, people willing to go so far to help him, make him happy, he felt the cocoon on his heart splinter, just a little.

After couple more minutes of debating and interrupting, the five teens were able to come up with 3 plans. With a flourish, Akira slapped the piece of paper onto the table among the candy wrappers and cake plates. Scrawled in his messy handwriting was;

him a super sappy love letter!

(The very thought made Norio cringe; there was no way he'd have the courage for that!)

Next, written in Hisoka flowery script;

2. Sing him a song

(Out of the question as well, Norio couldn't sing to save his life.)

And finally, in Haruhi's sweet albiet messy handwriting;

3. Just tell him how you feel and ask him to give you a chance.

Though this was the least ridiculous method, it was by far the scariest. The very thought of going up to him, feeling those warm dark eyes focus on him, sent shivers up his spine.

Night came quickly, and as the sun set, so did Honey's eyes. By 9:00, the small boy was laying in Hisoka's lap, bunnies clutched in his hands.

"He's like what, 17?" Akira whispered in disbelief. Haruhi had already phoned Mori, and the four of them still awake all sat around the table chatting idly. Soon however, Ronka glided gracefully into the room.

"Haruhi! One of those host boys is here to pick up his friend!"

Norio stiffened as if on cue. Haruhi patted his shoulder before lifting Honey off of Hisoka's lap as gently as possible, said girl following close behind with the older boy's plushes in hand. The two boys stayed behind, listening intently to Haruhi's brief conversation with Mori.

After that, the night only seemed to grow older. One by one, Haruhi's guests left for their own homes, each brimming with enthusiasm and anxiousness; they had a plan to enact.


End file.
